A draft of the 2027 XCO World Cup calendar has been leaked: it will expand to 12 events

The XCO/XCC World Cup could grow significantly in 2027. A first draft of the calendar includes up to 12 events between April and October, compared to the nine that make up the 2026 calendar. This would mean three more events in a season that will also need to leave space for the National Championships, the European Championship, and the World Championship.

This would be the XCO/XCC World Cup calendar for 2027

The information has been revealed by the Italian media PianetaMTB, which has accessed a draft of the international calendar for 2027. For now, it is a provisional planning, many of the venues are still not assigned, and one of the rounds in June even has two possible dates. Nevertheless, the document allows us to anticipate how a considerably more extensive XCO/XCC World Cup could look compared to the current one.

If the draft is confirmed, the competition would start on April 17 and 18 and end between October 8 and 10, almost six months later.

These are the 12 scheduled dates:

• April 17-18 – XCO/XCC World Cup #1 – Europe
• April 30-May 2 – XCO/XCC/DHI World Cup #2 – outside Europe
• May 15-16 – XCO/XCC World Cup #3 – Europe
• May 22-23 – XCO/XCC World Cup #4 – Europe
• June 11-13 – XCO/XCC/DHI/EDR World Cup #5 – Europe
• June 18-20 or 25-27 – XCO/XCC/DHI World Cup #6 – Europe
• July 2-4 – XCO/XCC/DHI/EDR World Cup #7 – Europe
• July 10-11 – XCO/XCC/DHI World Cup #8 – Europe
• August 20-22 – XCO/XCC/DHI World Cup #9 – Europe
• September 10-12 – XCO/XCC/DHI World Cup #10 – Europe
• September 25-26 – XCO/XCC World Cup #11 – outside Europe
• October 8-10 – XCO/XCC/DHI World Cup #12 – outside Europe

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The sixth event is the only one that still appears with two different windows. It could take place from June 18 to 20 or from June 25 to 27, but only one of those dates would host the race. Therefore, the total would still be 12 rounds.

From nine to twelve World Cups in just one year

The main change compared to 2026 is in the volume of competition. The XCO/XCC World Cup has nine events this season, and the 2027 draft adds three more.

Additionally, these three new rounds would be incorporated into the European block. According to the distribution outlined in the document, there would be nine World Cups in Europe and three outside the continent.

Some locations are already being discussed. PianetaMTB points to Portugal as a possible venue for the opener and South Korea for the second event, while the last two races would return to North America. For now, however, these venues should not be considered confirmed.

The distribution of the dates is also significant. Eight of the twelve World Cups would have taken place before July 11, which would concentrate two-thirds of the championship in the first three months.

The start would already be intense, with four events between April 17 and May 23. Then, the most compact block would arrive between June and July.

The fifth round is scheduled for June 11-13, and depending on where the sixth is placed, there could be several consecutive weeks of World Cup before the events on July 2-4 and July 10-11.

Nationals and Europeans before returning to the World Cup

After the first eight rounds, there would be a break in the World Cup, but not necessarily in competition.

The XCO/XCC National Championships are scheduled for the weekend of July 17 and 18, just a week after the eighth round. The riders competing in the entire championship would thus arrive at the fight for their respective national titles after a particularly concentrated block.

Subsequently, the European Championship will take place. The calendar places the MTB XCO/XCC/XCR Europeans from August 3 to 8 in Gothenburg, Sweden.

The World Cup would return shortly after with its ninth round, scheduled between August 20 and 22 in Europe.

The World Championship would fall between two World Cups

One of the most striking points appears precisely at the end of August.

The ninth World Cup would end on August 22, and just two days later, the period reserved for the UCI Cycling World Championships 2027 in Haute-Savoie Mont-Blanc would officially begin, taking place from August 24 to September 5.

In this case, we are indeed talking about official dates. The UCI has already confirmed the major multi-discipline World Championship in Haute-Savoie, France, with Les Gets among the venues designated for mountain biking.

We will still need to know the final program to determine exactly which days the XCC and XCO races will take place, but the fit leaves little margin around one of the main objectives of the entire season.

And afterwards, there wouldn't be much rest either. The tenth World Cup is scheduled between September 10 and 12, again in Europe.

The segment could thus consist of a World Cup at the end of August, the World Championship, and another Cup just a few days after the period reserved for the World Championships ends.

North America, as is tradition, would close the World Cup in October

After the tenth round, the last major trip of the season would arrive. The final two events would take place outside Europe. The penultimate is scheduled for September 25 and 26, while the final would take place between October 8 and 10.

PianetaMTB points to Soldier Hollow, in Utah, as a possible venue for the first and suggests Lake Placid or Mont-Sainte-Anne as options to close the championship. Again, these locations are still pending confirmation.

What the draft clearly shows is the duration that the championship would reach. From the first event on April 17 to the final on October 10, XCO specialists would have practically six months of World Cup.

We still need to know the venues, and the calendar may undergo modifications before it becomes official. But if the leaked structure is maintained, the change for 2027 will be significant: the XCO/XCC World Cup will go from nine to twelve events, with eight rounds concentrated before mid-July and a final segment marked by the World Championship and the last two events outside Europe.